


The Caretaker

by darkomoth



Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Bar fights, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Identity Reveal, Nursing, POV Matt Murdock, Pining Matt Murdock, happyish ending, mostly angst I think idk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:00:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23786713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkomoth/pseuds/darkomoth
Summary: Three times the reader has taken care of the Devil of Hell's kitchen and the one time he took care of heror: Matt Murdock gets beat up a lot and doesn't know how to handle it when the roles are reversed
Relationships: Matt Murdock/Reader
Comments: 3
Kudos: 82





	The Caretaker

1.

The first time y/n finds Matt in his Daredevil suit bleeding half to death, it’s an accident. He hadn’t meant for her to get caught up in this part of his life at all. In fact, if he could, Matt would’ve preferred to always keep her in the dark about all of this vigilante stuff.

It didn’t quite work out that way, however, when he came stumbling into his and Foggy’s office late one night. Having taken a beating from a group of men that were intent on kidnapping and selling a child to the highest bidder, Matt thought it would be best to patch himself up in his place of work that was surely abandoned this late at night. He thought wrong.

Apparently y/n was there, finalizing the paperwork that was going to be sent to the DA the following morning. She shot up front where she sat at her desk when he came barging through, clutching his stomach and gasping for air.

“What the hell?!” Y/n whisper-shouted and stumbled back into the furthest wall.

“Y/n.” Matt mumbled, barely coherent.

“...Matt?” She asked, clearly having recognized his voice. She pushed herself forward and strided over to him just in time to catch him as he was falling. “Oh my god. Y-you’re-”

“Yeah- I’m sorry-” He muttered, taking off his horned helmet. “Don’t have time to explain. Can you get the med kit in the other room?”

She helped him lie down on the floor as gently as possible before rushing to the next room and quickly grabbing the emergency medical supplies. When she got back, he could hear her heart beating faster than ever before. “Wha-what do I do? Tell me what to do.”

“Alcohol, stomach.” Matt said as clearly as he could in this state. Y/n nodded and mumbled curses to herself as she uncapped and poured the rubbing alcohol over the bleeding wound. He gritted his teeth and sucked in a sharp breath.

“What now?” She asked, panic increasing.

“I’m gonna need stitches.” Matt huffed.

“Stitches?! I can’t even sew a hole in my sweater!” Y/n yelled.

“You’ll do fine, it do-doesn’t need to be perfect. Just need to stop the bleeding.” He could feel himself slipping, at any moment he could lose consciousness.

“God damn it, shit, okay.” She talked herself through the whole process. Threading the needle again and again through his skin made him wince each time, but she didn’t let up which he was grateful for.

It took a good ten minutes for her to finish up the sutures and Matt had to admit, she did a pretty good job. The blood had stopped flowing from his abdomen and the slight ringing in his ears had ceased. Y/n then propped him up against the wall, stood up and began pacing.

“Do I call the police? No, obviously he’s frickin Daredevil, they’ll arrest him.” It was clear that she wasn’t talking to him, but her rambling to herself made the corners of his mouth turn up a little.

“I’ll be fine. Thank you y/n.” He said, trying to satiate her worries as much as possible. It didn’t seem to work if her heartbeat was any indication.

“Do Foggy and Karen know?” She asked as she knelt down beside him.

“Yeah. Yeah, they know.” Matt admitted a little guiltily.

Y/n only nodded, taking in the information. He could sense how she felt. Scared, confused, hurt. It was more painful than the stab wound.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want you to find out like this.” _Or at all_ , he thought.

Again, she just nodded.

It took some time, but eventually they repaired their relationship. Matt explained his abilities and y/n tried her best to understand and support him. He was actually relieved now that she knew his secret. He didn’t have to make excuses for why he didn’t make it to work, or why some days he’d show up with bruises marking his face. He could just _be_ around her.

2.

The second time Matt is in need of medical assistance, he seeks y/n out on purpose. It was almost 6:00 am and after a run-in with an Italian mob boss and a lot of criminal underlings, it was safe to say he needed some help.

Matt was closer to y/n’s apartment than anyone else he knew and seeing as how good of a job she did last time, he figured this was his best bet. He tapped on her window after climbing a too-tall fire escape which made y/n startle awake from where she layed on the couch.

Once she saw his silhouette, she rushed to unlock and open the sliding glass window. “Matt, what’re you doing here? Are you okay?” She mumbled sleepily.

“Not really.” He said as lighthearted as possible given the situation before tumbling inside and lying down on the floor of her apartment.

“Oh my god!” Y/n yelped. She dragged him over to her couch where she sat him down and looked over his body for injuries. “Where does it hurt?”

“Where doesn’t it?” Matt joked with a smile. That earned him a very light smack on the shoulder that he reacted to with a dramatic “Ow!”

“Seriously, tell me. Unless you want me to call an ambulance.” She threatened.

“Okay, okay.” He breathed. “I think my left shoulder is dislocated. I’m gonna need you to push it back into place.”

Y/n sat still on her coffee table looking for any indication that he was kidding. He was not.

“Damn it Matt, I am not a doctor, how do you expect me to do that without making it worse?” She asks incredulously.

“It’s pretty simple, actually. I just need you to hold my arm still and I’ll do the rest.”

She rubs her hands over her face and then tiredly says, “Alright.”

Y/n moves to the edge of the couch and grabs a hold of Matt’s arm and wrist with both hands.

“Hold it tight.” He says, straightening up as he prepares for what comes next. She tightens her grip, making sure he isn’t able to move.

“Okay. One, two-” Matt pushes his shoulder forward hard and the sound of his bones popping back into place makes y/n jump.

“What happened to three?!”

“Didn’t want you to loosen your grip.” He says as he slumps down into the sofa, perfectly content to fall asleep right here and now.

“Frickin Murdock.” Y/n mumbles, walking towards her bathroom. She returns less than a minute later with a small first aid kit. “Hold still.” She whispers while roaming her hands across his body, searching for more injuries.

“I’m fine now.” He says, rather unconvincingly it seems.

“Yeah, whatever you say, Daredevil.” She mutters, continuing with her endeavor.

Each time y/n finds a spot that makes Matt jolt from pain, she douses it with rubbing alcohol and places a bandage over it. Once she finishes with that, she removes his mask and boots before grabbing a hoard of pillows and blankets for him.

“You don’t have to-” He starts only for her to cut him off.

“Shut up and go to sleep. I’ll be checking on you throughout the night.” Y/n forces him to take some extra-strength advil and drink almost a full liter of water before she allows him to fall asleep. The last thing he remembers before closing his eyes is the smell of her shampoo hovering above him, making sure that he’s safe and comfortable. He drifts off with an aching shoulder and a smile on his lips.

3.

And then there was the time Matt fractured his leg. Y/n was there when it happened, as were Foggy and Karen. One very pissed off drunkard at Josie’s bar decided to start a fight while the four of you were having your regular friday-night hang out.

The fight wouldn’t have been a big deal if the two idiots engaged in it hadn’t pulled innocent bystanders into the mix. They were starting to get out of control, yelling and throwing things that would shatter and hurt those around them. Luckily it wasn’t a very busy night. Matt quickly snatched a scarf off a nearby table and wrapped it around the upper half of his face before anyone else could take notice.

“Stay back.” He said to his three friends before jumping into the middle of the two morons who were clambering at each other like children. One of them, however, was functional enough to notice Matt approaching and started throwing punches his way.

He easily dodged the attack and kicked the slender man into the pool table. The other guy then turned his attention on Matt as well. He threw a beer bottle at his head which nearly met its mark. Matt quickly subdued him by punching him in the face and throwing him to the ground.

“Stay down.” He said. When he wasn’t paying attention, however, the scrawny guy he’d flung into the pool table got back up and swung a pool stick with an incredible amount of force into his leg. It brought him down to his knee and the man took the opportunity to punch him. Matt was only down for a second. As the man moved closer, he flung his leg out, effectively tripping him. He shot back up despite the shooting pain in his leg and slammed his head into the ground which definitely broke the guy’s nose.

The customers that were standing around moved back into the far corners of the bar. Panting, Matt made his way back over to his group of friends.

“Holy shit, man, are you alright?” Foggy asked, propping him up with his arm in case he fell.

Matt just nodded, “Call 911. I need to get out of here before they show.” He tried to make his way to the back exit, but y/n stopped him.

“Whoa, slow down. Let me help you.” She said as calmly as possible, but her erratic heartbeat betrayed her tone. He was too tired to argue. And he also may not have wanted to.

“Can you guys stay and give the police a statement? I’m gonna take Matt back to his apartment and take care of,” she gestured to his whole body, “this.”

“Of course.” Karen said. “Don’t do anything stupid.” She said to Matt. “Well, anything _more_ stupid.”

He let out a huff of laughter. “No promises.”

Y/n pulled him outside after removing the scarf from his eyes. She allowed his arm to wrap around her shoulders and lean most of his weight on her as they stood on the sidewalk, waving down a cab. Matt could feel her body pressed to his, how soft and warm she was. He smiled despite himself and barely noticed as she pulled him into the backseat of the yellow car.

When they arrived back at his apartment and he was situated on his bed, y/n got to work immediately. She had apparently grown accustomed to taking care of him by now as she no longer asked what it was she needed to do. Instead she just grabbed all the usual supplies and returned without a word, making sure to handle his injuries with the utmost care.

Y/n formed a make-shift splint for his leg which she stated would heal just fine on its own so long as he doesn’t walk on it for a few days. Then she worked on the minor cuts and bruises that now adorned his face. “Always getting into fights.” She tsked at him.

“They started it.” Matt joked.

“And you just had to finish it.” She smirked. Then all the humour left her voice. “I really worry about you, you know?”

He stays silent for a moment. “I know.”

Y/n is biting her lip and breathing heavily, probably trying to stop herself from saying whatever it was that she was thinking. Then she swallowed and stated, “I just care about you. A lot. And I’m scared that one day you’ll be so hurt that I can’t fix you… What’ll I do then?” She continued dabbing at his face with the cotton balls and applying band-aids.

It was a redundant question, he knew, but he couldn’t help but try to reassure her. “It won’t happen.”

“You can’t know that.” She smiled sadly.

They remained in silence for a few minutes as y/n finished tending to his superficial wounds. She gave him another once-over, then put away the medical supplies once she was satisfied with her work.

As she came back towards him, Matt lifted his hand to grab a hold of her wrist. “I care about you too, you know?” He said with the most sincerity he could muster in his beaten state. He felt her pulse race and her body weight shift from one foot to the other.

Y/n leaned down to press a kiss to his forehead. “Get some rest. I’m gonna stay here tonight, just in case you need anything.” Then she walked out into the living room where she would stay for the evening. The scent of her perfume lingered in the air. It made it very difficult for him to fall asleep, instead clinging to the memory of her lips touching his skin.

4.

On a particular Sunday evening, Matt was sitting in his apartment reading through a new case he’d gotten behind on due to his nightly activities. He was just about to hang it up for the night due to how late it was getting when his phone went off. “Y/n. Y/n. Y/n.” The automated voice repeated. He was quick to answer it.

“Hey, what’re you doing up so late.” Matt smirked into his phone. He liked to tease y/n about how early she fell asleep, usually out by the time the sun goes down.

“Matt.” Her voice was strained and instantly he knew something was wrong. There was a strangled cough coming from the other end of the line and his stomach dropped.

Matt shot up from his place on the kitchen stool. “Where are you?” He asked, already pulling on his shoes and striding out the door.

“Home.” Y/n said. She sounded tired, like she was about to pass out.

“Okay, I will be right there, but I need you to stay on the phone. Can you do that?” He was frantic, desperately trying not to imagine the worst-case scenario, but his mind went there anyway.

When she didn’t answer for a long while, his panic grew. Matt was practically sprinting down the sidewalk, making his way to her place. It was only a few blocks away, but it felt like miles.

“Y/n?!” He yelled into the phone. He was at her building now, foregoing the elevators in favor of ascending the stairs. Matt gave up trying to talk to her through the phone as he was now at her door. He threw it to the ground as he busted into her apartment. The lock was broken and his worry tripled if that were even possible.

Matt stood at the entryway for a second, catching his breath and listening for y/n’s. He heard her faint heartbeat in the living room, on the floor. He followed the sound and when he got there, he dropped to his knees.

“Y/n…” His hands hovered above her body, not wanting to touch her just in case he made it worse. She stirred ever so slightly and he let out a deep, relieved sigh. Then he scooped her up into his arms and maneuvered his way towards her couch and laid her down as gently as possible.

Matt swallowed the lump in his throat and placed his hands on each of her shoulders, slowly making his way down until he found what was wrong.

A bullet lodged in her right shoulder and cuts and bruises forming across her face, neck, and legs. He felt sick, scared even, but mostly he just felt anger. When he finds the people that did this to her, God fucking help them.

Then she was shifting around and breathing erratically. “Hey, don’t move. Just stay still, I’ll be right back.” Matt said before rushing to gather the medical supplies y/n had stocked up on ever since she’d learned about his alter ego. He never appreciated it more than he did right now.

He returned and immediately got to work on the bullet that was still inside her. “I’m really sorry y/n, but this is going to hurt.”

He dug around inside her shoulder with a pair of medical pliers which made her yell in agony. Tears were streaming down her face and Matt felt pure sorrow spread through him at the sounds. He got it out eventually and quickly poured rubbing alcohol over the hole which made y/n sob even more.

“I’m sorry. I’m so, _so_ sorry.” He would repeat again and again as if it would take the pain away.

She would fade in and out and every time she was out he reached a new level of fear. He forged ahead, stitching up the wound and placing a large bandage over it.

Matt moved on to the shallow cuts, dabbing at them and placing band-aids where he could.

Y/n woke up fully while he was tending to a gash on her leg. She looks at him with a small smile on her face despite everything she’d just gone through.

“I’m usually the one doing this.” She laughs shakily through the pain. And _God_ , he is so happy to hear her voice. But he knows she should be saving her strength.

“Don’t speak, you’ll rip your stitches.” He says, far less humorous than she is.

She groans and leans her head back onto the arm of the couch. “I’m tired…” She starts to drift off again, closing her eyes as her heartbeat slows ever so slightly.

“Hey, y/n! No no, no more falling asleep. Come on!” Matt stops wrapping the gauze around her leg so that he can take her face into both his hands and gently jostles her. “Open your eyes for me, please.” His own heart rate is erratic, trying desperately to remain calm for her sake, but not doing so well at it.

He can’t help but think of all the times she’s done this for him. _Is it always this terrifying?_

Y/n blinks slowly, trying so hard to remain conscious. “Oh, hello.” She smiles once more.

_Delirious_ , Matt thinks. Really not good. However, it makes him smile just a little bit as he exhales a relieved sigh. “Hi, please stay awake. You can rest once I make sure you don’t have a concussion.” 

She doesn’t seem to truly absorb the information being thrown at her, but she nods anyway. “Okay.”

Once he’s finished nursing her, Matt finds a second to breathe. _She’s okay, she’s okay_ , he thinks to himself. “Y/n.” He says softly.

“Hmm.” She rolls her head so she can look at him through bleary eyes.

“I am so sorry this happened. I swear I’ll find who did this-”

“Not now.” Is all she says. “Please, not right now. Just stay.”

Matt’s heart is in his throat and he wants to refuse. He wants to call Karen and Foggy to take care of her while he hunts those responsible and smash their heads into the ground. But he just _can’t_. Not when y/n is here, like this, pleading him to stay with her.

“Okay.” He eventually says. Matt scoops her up into his arms very slowly and walks her to the bedroom where he places her as gently as possible onto her bed. He takes off her shoes and pulls the comforter up to her chin. Then he’s slipping his own shoes off and crawling in beside her. Y/n’s scoots back so that her back is pressed firmly to his chest.

Matt’s heart beats faster as he wraps his arms around her, pulling her as close as possible.

“Thank you.” Is the last thing y/n says before he hears her breathing even out and her heart grows steady.

Matt stays perfectly still so that she can sleep peacefully. He feels himself start to drift off as well, but not before voicing the last thought that comes to him. “I love you.”

**Author's Note:**

> A one-shot idea that's been stuck in my head for a while
> 
> Thank you for reading lemme know what you thought :)
> 
> (Also if you'd like, you can request matt x reader prompts)


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